Feed-water regulator.



F. L. RAY.

FEED WATER REGULATOR.

APP1|cAT|oN FILED SEPT. 9. 1914.

Patented Feb. 15, 1916 2 sHEETs-sHEET1 I F. L. RAY.

FEED WATER REGULATOR.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 9. I9I4. i

Patented Feb. 15, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

MW A... l@ W/ FREDERICK L. RAY, 0F LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

FEED-WATER REGULATOR.

Y Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 15, 1916.

Applcationled September 9, 1914. Serial No. 860,941.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK L. RAY, a citizen of thev United States,residing inl Louisville, county of Jefferson, and State of Kentucky,have invented new and useful Improvements in F eed-Water Regulators, ofwhich the'following is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic feed water regulators and its objectis to provide a device affording a continuous and automatic feed ofwater into a boilerin proportion to the evaporation, to provide a devicewhich will accomplish this result without consuming any steam or waterand without suffering interference from fluctuations in pressure, eitherin the boiler or in the source Vof water supply.

My device is also applicable for the maintaining of a constant levelin-other liquidcontainers. l

I accomplish these results by and through the mechanism illustrated inthe accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a vertical section ofthe entire apparatus, Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through thevalve-bushing B1; Fig.y 3 is a transverse section of the same; Fig. 4fis a section through the line marked Z Z in Fig. 1, and Fig. 5 is a topview.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

A1 is a casting forming a oat chamber at the bottom and a valve chamberat the top. It is closed at the bottom with a head A2. A3 and A4 arepipes leading from the interior of the said float chamber into theboiler E, and are connected with the boiler at a place such that themean water level ofV the boiler will be about opposite the middle of theiioat chamber.

A5 is a water gage which is connected at A6 and A7 with the casting A1and the float chamber within.

At the points A8, A and A10 Vgage cocks are attached to the casting A1,which is per-` the otheropposite an outlet opening`A1f, the

groove A1'1 extends over tothe edge of the the cylindrical space beforementioned. Y' A sleeve or bushing B1 in the formof a tube or pipeV fitsinside the cylindric-al space and is vprovided with two sets of ports orwindows,

B1, B3 as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. When k casting. A head A15 is providedto close in the-sleeve is in position one setrB.2 of these Y.

ports liesopposite the annular groove A12 which is'adjacent to the inletA13, andthe other set of ports B3 lies in communicationv with theannular 1 groove whichY is adjacent to the out et i 11.

lIhe inner cylindrical surface of the sleeve stem C1 is movabletherethrough, a bushing being provided to prevent leakage. Y'

Attached to the valve stem C1 is a piston G1. As shown in the drawingthis piston C2 is elongated and'has ends of such diameter as to fitsnugly the inside of the sleeve or bushingV B1.` It is provided at theend nearest the opening A16 with water groovesV C3 to hinder leakage.Intermediate between the ends of the piston the external diameter of thepiston is reduced so that an annular space is left between the innerwalls of the sleeve and that portionk of the piston having the reduceddiameter. The piston is tubular, the outer structure of the piston beingattached to the stem C1 by means of a web vat each end. The spacebetween the piston C2 andthe head A15 communicates with the outn let andthe outlet ports,a space being left between said head A15'and'the end ofthe Y sleeve or bushing B1. The. piston is movable' parallelwith theaxis -of the cylindrical bushing B1, between the limitsXed by the headA15 and the other end'of'casing wall, and the outlet ports B3 areV soplaced that in some positions of thel piston they, are in communication.with the annular space between the inner cylindrical wall of the pistonchamber (being the innersurface of the bushing B,) and that portionofthe pistonsurface which,VY is of less diameter, and in other positionsthey are cut olf from said space by the end of the piston. The outletJports are at all times, however, in communif CII.

cation with the outlet opening in the casting A1` and also with thegroove E3 and the space adjacent to the head A15. A pipe A communicatesbetween the outlet opening and the boiler.

A float D1 is provided in the. float chamber and is adapted to rise andfall as the level of water in the float chamber and boiler rises andfalls. In the form shown it is spherical and of hollow metal. A floatrod D2 is attached to the iioat, and there is pivoted to the extremityof said iioat rod a bell crank pivoted at D?, the other extremity of thecrank being pivoted to the valve stem C?. The bell crank D3 is bored atD4, so as to worlr on a pin D5, one end of which is fitted into a socketA24 in the casting A1, the other end passing through a ring` A20 and ahollow nut A21 inserted in a suitable opening in the casting A1. Bymeans of this structure renewal of worn parts is made convenient. Thecasting A1 is provided with a head. A, which makes tight the upper partof the float chamber and in this head a testing device is provided,consisting of a plug A15 through which a threaded stem A19 can bescrewed in so as to move the valve stem independently of movements ofthe float.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: 'When the water leverfalls in the boiler, it also falls in the fioat chamber, causing theiioat to move downward. This downward motion of the float, transmittedthrough the iioat-rod and bell crank, causes a thrust in the valve stemand so causes a movement of the piston. The annular space around thepiston being at all positions in communication with the inlet ports B2and :inlet A1, all of these spaces are filled with water when the valveis closed and the float is at the highest level; when the valve ispushed away from the seat, the outer end of the piston is pushed pastthe outlet ports, which opens upa communication between the annularspace around. the piston, filled with water, and the outlet ports B3whichlead to the outlet A14. The water iiows through this space and intothe outlet ports and thence into the pipe leading into the boiler. ittends to raise thefwater level and thus to raise the float. The risingofthe float, by means of the float rod and bell crank,y operates to drawthe piston. back toward its seat and'thus close communication betweenthe outlet por-ts andthe space around the piston. It is evident that aslight difference in the level opens the valve slightly and that a largedifference in level opens it wider so that the operation of the valveadjusts `itself to the rapidity .of the evaporation or change in level.One of the objections. to most forms of feed water regulators is thattheir action is interfered with by sudden iuctuations in pressure in theboiler and also by Zhen it reachesl the boiler:

sudden fluctuations in the supply pipe leading yto the regulator,tending to throw the valve out of balance and interfering withzitsyoperation. The arrangement of outlet and inlet which appears in mydevice obviates.

all difficulty of this character and produces a valve which is balancedas against fluctuations of bothkinds and is also so balanced as torequire a minimum of force to operate it. In view of the fact that thepistonis tubular and that the closed spaces vbetween piston and the endsof the. cylinder lare in communication with `the outlet ports andthrough them with. the boiler itself, .no force is required .of thefloat, in order to operate the valve, except that required Yby frictionand by the slight difference in pressure .due to the area of the valvestem., Furthermore the fact that the water comes through the.

inlet and surrounds the piston preventsv any unequal pressure on thesame or any `undue pressure from above.

In regulators employing piston valves, s0 designed that the space at theendl of the piston is in communication. and under the.

same pressure as that existing in the inlet pipe, the amount of forcerequired to move' the valve will vary with the amount of lpressure insaid inlet pipe, and this trouble interferes with he usefulness of thevalve. ln view of the fact that it is sometimes impossible to avoid suchvariations at the inlet it will be evident that structure presents animportant advance over devices designed in that way. No change in `thebuoyant force of the float is requiredV in my 4device even. though thehead in the inlet pipe= should be greatly multiplied.

lt will be noticed that the tubular interior of the piston is incommunication with the outlet-passage and thus with the interior of` theboiler at all positions of the piston, and also withthe closed spaces ateach end of the piston between the ends of the piston and the walls ofthe valve chamber. This balances the 'piston'perfectlyg because the.pressure on the ends yof the piston is the;

scribed, is designed'to perform a similarl function.` n l The testingdevice is utilized for'the purpose of finding out immediatelywhether thepiston is in working order. By screwingfit in, the valve is immediatelyopened, irre-` spectiveofthe position of the float, and water will flowthrough thevalve. After testing, the testing stem is screwed out againand the valve is again subject to movements of the float. A

This device also provides a means by which the passage from the sourceof supply to the boiler can be opened and held open, thereby cutting theregulating apparatus out of Service when desired.

Three annular grooves B4 are cut inthe bushing B, to take care of scaleand sediment, which can accumulate in the groove to a considerableextent without interfering with the piston. The edge of the grooves alsoacts as a cutting edge which tends to clean the piston of adheringscale. The two outermost grooves are located Vwhere the piston would bemost likely to stick if scale has accumulated; that is, when the valveis wide open, the grooves are adjacent to the close-fitting portion ofthe piston. This diminishes the danger of such sticking, and diminishesfriction at that part of the stroke when friction counts for mostwhenthe piston is starting on its return stroke. The grooves atthis positionprevent the limitation of the pistons movement through'the formation andgrowth of a ridge of scale next to the extreme position of the piston.The grooves are located so that when the piston is wide open, the outeredge 4of the close fitting portion of the piston is opposite the groove.

I claim as new and desire to Letters Patent the following:

l. In a boiler feed water regulator, a float, parts forming a floatchamber, a tubular piston having a stem, parts connecting said float andsaid stem, parts forming aY piston chamber of cylindrical interior,having inlet and outlet openings and ports therein, a plate separatingsaid float chamber from said piston chamber, said plate being pierced sothat the piston stem is movable therethrough, and a head closing theopposite end of said piston chamber; `the said piston having acylindrical outer surface, which near each end of the piston is of suchdiameter as to fit the cylindrical interior of the cylinder-chamber,but. which is of less diameter between said end portions, the limits ofmotion of said piston being such that the inlet port is always incommunication with the annular space between the inner cylindrical wallof the piston chamber and that portion of the piston surface which is ofless diameter, but the outlet isv in certain positions in communicationwith said annular space, and in other positions is cut off protect by bythe end of the piston, the space between the before mentioned separatingplate and the nearest end of the piston being connected with the spacebetween the other end ofthe piston and the head before mentioned by thetubular interior of the piston, the space between the before mentionedhead and the end of the piston nearest to it being at all positions incommunication with the outlet port above mentioned. A

2. In a feed water regulator, a float designed tofrise and fall with thelevel of water in the boiler, parts forming a valve casing into whichlead 'openings designed for inlet and outlet, a bushing having two setsof perforations, so placed that one set is adjacent to the inlet, andthe other adjacent to the outlet, a tubular piston movable within fixedlimits in said bushing and having its outer surface so formed that itsends fit closely tothe bushing but leave an annular space intermediatebetween said ends, be-

tween the walls of said chamber Yand the' surface of said piston, thesaid perforations being further so placed that said annular space incertain positions of the piston is in communication with both sets ofperforations and in other positions is in communi-V cation only with theinlet set of perforations, all in combination with means for causingsaid piston to go forward or back according as the float rises or falls,parts forming a passage leading from the outlet chamber to the boiler,the outlet opening being so extended by a groove in the inner surface ofthe casing, and the bushing being so placed in the opening whichreceives it that the Voutlet, opening directly communicates with thespace adjacent to the head.

3. In a feed water regulator, a float designed to rise and fall with thelevel'of water in the boiler, parts forming a valve casing into whichlead openings designed for inlet and outlet, a bushing having two setsof perforations, so placed that one .set is adjacent to the inlet, andthe other adjacent to the outlet, a piston movable within fixed limitsin said bushing and having its outer surface so formed that its ends fitclosely toA 'the bushing but leave an annular space beoutlet chamber tothe boiler, the bushing having annular interior grooves with sharpedges, substantially as described.

lVitnesses BIamn HORST. LOUISE EAsTLANn,

Copies of this patent may be obtainedfor ive cents each, byraddrevssingthe Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C.

lparts iorminga passage leading from the l FREDERICK L. RAY. Y

